The US President along with Colombia's president have escalated the volume in their verbal conflict, further raising tensions in their relations after US forces struck Venezuela in an operation to oust Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from power.
"He has drug factories and production sites and his time is running out," Trump added.
Rising Rhetoric coupled with Accusations
Addressing reporters over the weekend, the US president suggested comparable armed intervention against Bogotá, claiming the country is also "very ill" and governed by an unwell individual who enjoys creating cocaine and trafficking it to the US."
While Colombia is the globe's biggest source of the narcotic, authorities have found no indication linking President Gustavo Petro, the nation's current leader, is in any way involved in the business.
A Deteriorating Alliance
This nation has long been a close partner of the United States in the fight against drug trafficking and enjoyed bipartisan support in the US capital, but relations have soured dramatically since Trump was elected.
Its narcotics trade is largely controlled by criminal organizations including the Clan del Golfo, the National Liberation Army (ELN) and breakaway groups of the demobilized Farc, most of its former fighters demobilised after a historic peace agreement.
Colombia's Firm Rebuttal
Upon being questioned if military intervention comparable to Venezuela was a possibility against his country, Trump replied: "That seems like a good idea to me."
Petro, a former leftist guerrilla who disarmed decades ago, firmly denied these allegations. "I am neither an illegitimate leader and I am not involved in narcotics," he stated.
"He comments without information. Cease defaming me," he posted online.
"If they [the US] bomb rural communities, they will become thousands of guerrillas in the hills. If they capture the nation's leader, whom many of the country loves and respects, they will provoke the powerful force of the people," the president cautioned.
From Insurgent to Statesman
Petro spent a period in his early life belonging of the leftist M-19 insurgent movement but is not believed he did not participated in combat. After demobilizing, he was involved in drafting the constitutional rewrite in 1991 and eventually served as an influential politician. He was mayor of the Colombian capital before being elected president.
"I pledged to abstain from using a gun ... but for the homeland I would take up weapons once more," he vowed.
Heightened Measures along with Cross-Political Condemnation
The Colombian defence minister announced that Petro's personal security was strengthened.
A segment of Colombia’s conservative opposition have allied themselves with Trump, but voices from across the political spectrum have denounced the threats of a US attack on Colombia.
Bilateral and Economic Strains
Washington cancelled Petro’s visa after he urged US troops to ignore orders that violate law. Later, in October, authorities imposed economic restrictions against the president, his spouse and several key allies.
Concurrently while America bolstered its military presence in the Caribbean and striking suspected drug boats to pressure Venezuela’s Maduro, US forces executed operations on boats in the eastern Pacific region near Colombia.
